The Statute of Anne, also known as the Copyright Act 1710 (cited either as 8 Ann. c. 21 or as 8 Ann. c. 19),[1] is an act of the Parliament of Great Britain passed in 1710, which was the first statute to provide for copyright regulated by the government and courts, rather than by private parties.

Prior to the statute's enactment in 1710, copying restrictions were authorized by the Licensing of the Press Act 1662. These restrictions were enforced by the Stationers' Company, a guild of printers given the exclusive power to print—and the responsibility to censor—literary works. The censorship administered under the Licensing Act led to public protest; as the act had to be renewed at two-year intervals, authors and others sought to prevent its reauthorisation.[2] In 1694, Parliament refused to renew the Licensing Act, ending the Stationers' monopoly and press restrictions.[3]

Over the next 10 years the Stationers repeatedly advocated bills to re-authorize the old licensing system, but Parliament declined to enact them. Faced with this failure, the Stationers decided to emphasise the benefits of licensing to authors rather than publishers, and the Stationers succeeded in getting Parliament to consider a new bill. This bill, which after substantial amendments was granted Royal Assent on 5 April 1710, became known as the Statute of Anne due to its passage during the reign of Queen Anne. The new law prescribed a copyright term of 14 years, with a provision for renewal for a similar term, during which only the author and the printers to whom they chose to license their works could publish the author's creations.[4] Following this, the work's copyright would expire, with the material falling into the public domain. Despite a period of instability known as the Battle of the Booksellers when the initial copyright terms under the Statute began to expire, the Statute of Anne remained in force until the Copyright Act 1842 replaced it.

The statute is considered a "watershed event in Anglo-American copyright history ... transforming what had been the publishers' private law copyright into a public law grant".[5] Under the statute, copyright was for the first time vested in authors rather than publishers; it also included provisions for the public interest, such as a legal deposit scheme. The Statute was an influence on copyright law in several other nations, including the United States, and even in the 21st century is "frequently invoked by modern judges and academics as embodying the utilitarian underpinnings of copyright law".[6]

With the introduction of the printing press to England by William Caxton in 1476,[7] printed works became both more common and more economically important. As early as 1483, Richard III recognised the value of literary works by specifically exempting them from the government's protectionist legislation.[8] Over the next fifty years, the government moved further towards economic regulation,[9] abolishing the provision with the Printers and Binders Act 1534, which also banned the import of foreign works and empowered the Lord Chancellor to set maximum pricing for English books.[10] This was followed by increasing degrees of censorship.[11] A further proclamation of 1538, aiming to stop the spread of Lutheran doctrine, saw Henry VIII note that "sondry contentious and sinyster opiniones, have by wrong teachynge and naughtye bokes increaced and growen within this his realme of England", and declare that all authors and printers must allow the Privy Council or their agents to read and censor books before publication.[10]

The Mark of the Stationers' Company, who held a monopoly on the right to copy from 1556 until 1695.

This censorship peaked on 4 May 1557, when Mary I issued a royal warrant formally incorporating the Stationers' Company. The old method of censorship had been limited by the Second Statute of Repeal, and with Mary's increasing unpopularity the existing system was unable to cope with the number of critical works being printed. Instead, the royal warrant devolved this power to the Company.[12] This was done by decreeing that only the Company's publishers could print and distribute books. Their Wardens were given the power to enter any printing premises, destroy illegal works and imprison anyone found manufacturing them.[9] In this way the government "harnessed the self interest of the publishers to the yoke of royal incentive", guaranteeing that the Company would follow the rules due to the economic monopoly it gave their members.[13] With the abolition of the Star Chamber and Court of High Commission by the Long Parliament, the legal basis for this warrant was removed, but the Long Parliament chose to replace it with the Licensing Act 1662.[14] This provided that the Company would retain their original powers, and imposed additional restrictions on printing; King's Messengers were permitted to enter any home or business in search of illegal presses. The legislation required renewal every two years, and was regularly reapproved.[15]

This was not "copyright" as is normally understood; although there was a monopoly on the right to copy, this was available to publishers, not authors, and did not exist by default; it only applied to books which had been accepted and published by the Company.[16] A member of the Company would register the book, and would then have a perpetual copyright over its printing, copying and publication, which could be leased, transferred to others or given to heirs upon the member's death.[17] The only exception to this was that, if a book was out of print for more than 6 months and the publisher ignored a warning to make it available, the copyright would be released and other publishers would be permitted to copy it.[18] Authors themselves were not particularly respected until the 18th century, and were not permitted to be members of the Company, playing no role in the development or use of its licences despite the Company's sovereign authority to decide what was published.[19] There is evidence that some authors were recognised by the Company itself to have the right to copy and the right to alter their works; these authors were uniformly the writers of uneconomical books who were underwriting their publication.[20]

The Company's monopoly, censorship and failure to protect authors made the system highly unpopular; John Milton wrote Areopagitica as a result of his experiences with the Company, accusing Parliament of being deceived by "the fraud of some old patentees and monopolisers in the trade of bookselling".[21] He was not the first writer to criticise the system, with John Locke writing a formal memorandum to the MP Edward Clarke in 1693 while the Licensing Act was being renewed, complaining that the existing system restricted the free exchange of ideas and education while providing an unfair monopoly for Company members.[22] Academic Mark Rose attributes the efforts of Milton to promote the "bourgeois public sphere", along with the Glorious Revolution's alterations to the political system and the rise of public coffee houses, as the source of growing public unhappiness with the system.[23] At the same time, this was a period in which clearly defined political parties were taking shape, and with the promise of regular elections, an environment where the public were of increasing importance to the political process. The result was a "developing public sphere [which] provided the context that enabled the collapse of traditional press controls".[2]

The result of this environment was the lapse of the Licensing Act. In November 1694, a committee was appointed by the Commons to see what laws were "lately expired and expiring [and] fit to be revived and continued". The Committee reported in January 1695, and suggested the renewal of the Licensing Act; this was included in the "Continuation Bill", but rejected by the House of Commons on 11 February. When it reached the House of Lords, the Lords re-included the Licensing Act, and returned the bill to the Commons. In response, a second committee was appointed - this one to produce a report indicating why the Commons disagreed with the inclusion of the Licensing Act, and chaired by Edward Clarke. This committee soon reported to the Commons, and Clarke was ordered to carry a message to the Lords requesting a conference over the Act. On 18 April 1695, Clarke met with representatives of the Lords, and they agreed to allow the Continuation Bill to pass without the renewal of the Licensing Act.[3] With this, "the Lords' decision heralded an end to a relationship that had developed throughout the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries between the State and the Company of Stationers",[24] ending both nascent publishers' copyright and the existing system of censorship.[24]

John Locke's close relationship with Clarke, along with the respect he commanded, is seen by academics as what led to this decision.[24] Locke had spent the early 1690s campaigning against the statute, considering it "ridiculous" that the works of dead authors were held perpetually in copyright.[25] In letters to Clarke he wrote of the absurdity of the existing system, complaining primarily about the unfairness of it to authors, and "[t]he parallels between Locke's commentary and those reasons presented by the Commons to the Lords for refusing to renew the 1662 Act are striking".[26] He was assisted by a number of independent printers and booksellers, who opposed the monopolistic aspects of the Act, and introduced a petition in February 1693 that the Act prevented them from conducting their business.[25] The "developing public sphere",[2] along with the harm the existing system had caused to both major political parties, is also seen as a factor.[27]

The failure to renew the Licensing Act led to confusion and both positive and negative outcomes; while the government no longer played a part in censoring publications, and the monopoly of the Company over printing was broken, there was uncertainty as to whether or not copyright was a binding legal concept without the legislation.[15] Economic chaos also resulted; with the Company now unable to enforce any monopoly, provincial towns began establishing printing presses, producing cheaper books than the London booksellers. The absence of the censorship provisions also opened Britain up as a market for internationally printed books, which were similarly cheaper than those British printers could produce.[28]

The rejection of the existing system was not done with universal approval, and there were ultimately twelve unsuccessful attempts to replace it.[29] The first was introduced to the House of Commons on 11 February 1695. A committee, again led by Clarke, was to write a "Bill for the Better Regulating of Printing and the Printing Presses". This bill was essentially a copy of the Licensing Act, but with a narrower jurisdiction; only books covering religion, history, the affairs of the state or the law would require official authorisation.[30] Four days after its introduction, the Stationers' held an emergency meeting to agree to petition the Commons - this was because the bill did not contain any reference to books as property, eliminating their monopoly on copying. Clarke also had issues with the provisions, and the debate went on until the end of the Parliamentary session, with the bill failing to pass.[31]

With the end of the Parliamentary session came the first general election under the Triennial Act 1694, which required the Monarch to dissolve Parliament every 3 years, causing a general election. This led to the "golden age" of the English electorate, and allowed for the forming of two major political parties - the Whigs and Tories. At the same time, with the failure to renew the Licensing Act, a political press developed. While the Act had been in force only one official newspaper existed; the London Gazette, published by the government. After its demise, a string of newspapers sprang into being, including the Flying Post, the Evening Post and the Daily Courant. Newspapers had a strong bias towards particular parties, with the Courant and the Flying Post supporting the Whigs and the Evening Post in favour of the Tories, leading to politicians from both parties realising the importance of an efficient propaganda machine in influencing the electorate.[32] This added a new dimension to the Commons' decision to reject two new renewals of the Licensing Act in the new Parliamentary session.[27]

Authors, as well as Stationers, then joined the demand for a new system of licensing. Jonathan Swift was a strong advocate for licensing,[33] and Daniel Defoe wrote on 8 November 1705 that with the absence of licensing, "One Man Studies Seven Year, to bring a finish'd Peice into the World, and a Pyrate Printer, Reprints his Copy immediately, and Sells it for a quarter of the Price ... these things call for an Act of Parliament".[34] Seeing this, the Company took the opportunity to experiment with a change to their approach and argument. Instead of lobbying because of the effect the absence of legislation was having on their trade, they lobbied on behalf of the authors, but seeking the same things. The first indication of this change in approach comes from the 1706 pamphlet by John How, a stationer, titled Reasons humbly Offer'd for a Bill for the Encouragement of Learning and the Improvement of Printing. This argued for a return to licensing, not with reference to the printers, but because without something to protect authors and guarantee them an income, "Learned men will be wholly discouraged from Propagating the most useful Parts of Knowledge and Literature".[35] Using these new tactics and the support of authors, the Company petitioned Parliament again in both 1707 and 1709 to introduce a bill providing for copyright.[33]

Although both bills failed, they led to media pressure that was exacerbated by both Defoe and How. Defoe's A Review, published on 3 December 1709 and demanding "a Law in the present Parliament ... for the Encouragement of Learning, Arts, and Industry, by securing the Property of Books to the Authors or Editors of them",[36] was followed by How's Some Thoughts on the Present State of Printing and Bookselling, which hoped that Parliament "might think fit to secure Property in Books by a Law".[36] This was followed by another review by Defoe on 6 December, in which he even went so far as to provide a draft text for the bill.[36] On 12 December, the Stationers submitted yet another petition asking for legislation on the issue, and the House of Commons gave three MPs – Spencer Compton, Craven Peyton and Edward Wortley – permission to form a drafting committee. On 11 January 1710, Wortley introduced this bill, titling it A Bill for the Encouragement of Learning and for Securing the Property of Copies of Books to the rightful Owners thereof.[37]

The bill imposed fines on anyone who imported or traded in unlicensed or foreign books, required every book for which copyright protection was sought to be entered into the Stationers' Register, provided a legal deposit system centred around the King's Library, the University of Oxford and the University of Cambridge, but said nothing about limiting the term of copyright. It also specified that books were property; an emphasis on the idea that authors deserved copyright simply due to their efforts.[38] The Stationers were enthusiastic, urging Parliament to pass the bill, and it received its second reading on 9 February. A Committee of the Whole met to amend it on 21 February, with further alterations made when it was passed back to the House of Commons on 25 February.[39] Alterations during this period included minor changes, such as extending the legal deposit system to cover Sion College and the Faculty of Advocates, but also major ones, including the introduction of a limit on the length of time for which copyright would be granted.[40]

Linguistic amendments were also included; the line in the preamble emphasising that authors possessed books as they would any other piece of property was dropped, and the bill moved from something designed "for Securing the Property of Copies of Books to the rightful Owners thereof" to a bill "for the Encouragement of Learning, by Vesting the Copies of Printed Books in the Authors or Purchasers of such Copies".[41] Another amendment allowed anyone to own and trade in copies of books, undermining the Stationers.[41] Other changes were made when the bill went to the House of Lords, and it was finally returned to the Commons on 5 April. The aims of the resulting statute are debated; Ronan Deazley suggests that the intent was to balance the rights of the author, publisher and public in such a way as to ensure the maximum dissemination of works,[42] while other academics argue that the bill was intended to protect the Company's monopoly or, conversely, to weaken it. Oren Bracha, writing in the Berkeley Technology Law Journal, says that when considering which of these options are correct, "the most probable answer [is] all of them".[43] Whatever the motivations, the bill was passed on 5 April 1710, and is commonly known simply as the Statute of Anne due its passage during the reign of Queen Anne.[44]

Consisting of 11 sections, the Statute of Anne is formally titled "An Act for the Encouragement of Learning, by Vesting the Copies of Printed Books in the Authors or Purchasers of Copies, during the Times therein mentioned".[45] The preamble for the Statute indicates the purpose of the legislation - to bring order to the book trade - saying:

Whereas Printers, Booksellers, and other Persons, have of late frequently taken the Liberty of Printing, Reprinting, and Publishing, or causing to be Printed, Reprinted, and Published Books, and other Writings, without the Consent of the Authors or Proprietors of such Books and Writings, to their very great Detriment, and too often to the Ruin of them and their Families: For Preventing therefore such Practices for the future, and for the Encouragement of Learned Men to Compose and Write useful Books; May it please Your Majesty, that it may be Enacted ... [46]

The Statute then continued by stating the nature of copyright. The right granted was the right to copy; to have sole control over the printing and reprinting of books, with no provision to benefit the owner of this right after the sale.[47] This right, previously held by the Stationers' Company's members, would automatically be given to the author as soon as it was published, although they had the ability to license these rights to another person. The copyright could be gained through two stages; first, the registration of the book's publication with the Company, to prevent unintentional infringement, and second, the deposit of copies of the book at the Stationers' Company, the royal library and various universities. One restriction on copyright was a "cumbersome system" designed to prohibit unreasonably high prices for books, which limited how much authors could charge for copies.[48] There was also a prohibition on importing foreign works, with exceptions made for Latin and Greek classics.[41]

Once registration had been completed and the deposits were made, the author was granted an exclusive right to control the copying of the book. Penalties for infringing this right were severe, with all infringing copies to be destroyed and large fines to be paid to both the copyright holder and the government; there was only a three-month statute of limitations on bringing a case, however.[47] This exclusive right's length was dependent on when the book had been published. If it was published after 10 April 1710, the length of copyright was 14 years; if published before that date, 21 years.[49] An author who survived until the copyright expired would be granted an additional 14-year term, and when that ran out, the works would enter the public domain.[47] Copyright under the Statute applied to Scotland and England, as well as Ireland when that country joined the union in 1800.[50]

The Statute was initially welcomed, ushering in "stability to an insecure book trade" while providing for a "pragmatic bargain" between the rights of the author, publisher and public intended to boost public learning and the availability of knowledge.[51] The clause requiring book deposits, however, was not seen as a success. If the books were not deposited, the penalties would be severe, with a fine of £5. The number of deposits required, however, meant that it was a substantial burden; a print run might only be of 250 copies, and if they were particularly expensive to print, it could be cheaper to ignore the law. Some booksellers argued that the deposit provision only applied to registered books, and so deliberately avoided registration just to be able to minimise their liability.[52] This was further undermined by the ruling in Beckford v Hood,[53] where the Court of King's Bench confirmed that, even without registration, copyright could be enforced against infringers.[54]

Another failure, identified by Bracha, is not found in what the Statute covered, but in what it did not. The Statute did not provide any means for identifying authors, did not identify what constituted authored works, and covered only "books", even while discussing "property" as a whole. Moreover, the right provided was merely that of "making and selling ... exact reprints. To a large extent, the new regime was the old stationer's privilege, except it was universalised, capped in time, and formally conferred upon authors rather than publishers".[55] The effect of the Statute on authors was also minimal. Previously, publishers would have bought the original manuscript from writers for a lump sum; with the passage of the Statute, they simply did the same thing, but with the manuscript's copyright as well. The remaining economic power of the Company also allowed them to pressure booksellers and distributors into continuing their past arrangements, meaning that even theoretically "public domain" works were, in practise, still treated as copyrighted.[55]

When the copyrights granted to works published before the Statute began to expire in 1731, the Stationers' Company and their publishers again began to fight to preserve the status quo. Their first port of call was Parliament, where they lobbied for new legislation to extend the length of copyright, and when this failed, they turned to the courts. Their principal argument was that copyright had not been created by the Statute of Anne; it existed beforehand, in the common law, and was perpetual. As such, even though the Statute provided for a limited term, all works remained in copyright under the common law regardless of when statutory copyright expired.[56] Starting in 1743, this began a thirty-year campaign known as the "Battle of the Booksellers".[51] They first tried going to the Court of Chancery and applying for injunctions prohibiting other publishers from printing their works, and this was initially successful. A series of legal setbacks over the next few years, however, left the law ambiguous.[57]

The first major action taken to clarify the situation was Millar v Taylor.[58]Andrew Millar, a British publisher, purchased the rights to James Thomson's The Seasons in 1729, and when the copyright term expired, a competing publisher named Robert Taylor began issuing his own reprints of the work. Millar sued, and went to the Court of King's Bench to obtain an injunction and advocate perpetual copyright at common law.[59] The jury found that the facts submitted by Millar were accurate, and asked the judges to clarify whether common law copyright existed. The first arguments were delivered on 30 June 1767, with John Dunning representing Millar and Edward Thurlow representing Taylor. A second set of arguments were submitted for Millar by William Blackstone on 7 June, and judgment was given on 20 April 1769. The final decision, written by Lord Mansfield and endorsed by Aston and Willes JJ, confirmed that there existed copyright at common law that turned "upon Principles before and independent" of the Statute of Anne, something justified because it was right "that an Author should reap the pecuniary Profits of his own Ingenuity and Labour". In other words, regardless of the Statute, there existed a perpetual copyright under the common law.[60]Yates J dissented, on the grounds that the focus on the author obscured the effect this decision would have on "the rest of mankind", which he felt would be to create a virtual monopoly, something that would harm the public and should certainly not be considered "an encouragement of the propagation of learning".[61]

Although this decision was a boon to the Stationers, it was short-lived. Following Millar, the right to print The Seasons was sold to a coalition of publishers including Thomas Becket. Two Scottish printers, Alexander and John Donaldson, began publishing an unlicensed edition, and Becket successfully obtained an injunction to stop them. This decision was appealed in Donaldson v Beckett,[62] and eventually went to the House of Lords.[63] After consulting with the judges of the King's Bench, Common Pleas and Exchequer of Pleas, the Lords concluded that copyright was not perpetual, and that the term permitted by the Statute of Anne was the maximum length of legal protection for publishers and authors alike.[64]

Lord North, who expanded the provisions of the Statute of Anne in 1775.

Until its repeal, most extensions to copyright law were based around provisions found in the Statute of Anne. The one successful bill from the lobbying in the 1730s, which came into force on 29 September 1739, extended the provision prohibiting the import of foreign books to also prohibit the import of books that, while originally published in Britain, were being reprinted in foreign nations and then shipped to England and Wales. This was intended to stop the influx of cheap books from Ireland, and also repealed the price restrictions in the Statute of Anne.[65] Another alteration was over the legal deposit provisions of the Statute, which many booksellers found unfair. Despite an initial period of compliance, the principle of donating copies of books to certain libraries lapsed, partly due to the unwieldiness of the statute's provisions and partly because of a lack of cooperation by the publishers. In 1775 Lord North, who was Chancellor of the University of Oxford, succeeded in passing a bill that reiterated the legal deposit provisions and granted the universities perpetual copyright on their works.[66]

Another range of extensions came in relation to what could be copyrighted. The Statute only referred to books, and being an Act of Parliament, it was necessary to pass further legislation to include various other types of intellectual property. The Engraving Copyright Act 1734 extended copyright to cover engravings, statutes in 1789 and 1792 involved cloth, sculptures were copyrighted in 1814 and the performance of plays and music were covered by copyright in 1833 and 1842 respectively.[50] The length of copyright was also altered; the Copyright Act 1814 set a copyright term of either 28 years, or the natural life of the author if this was longer.[67] Despite these expansions, some still felt copyright was not a strong enough regime. In 1837, Thomas Noon Talfourd introduced a bill into Parliament to expand the scope of copyright. A friend of many men of letters, Talfourd aimed to provide adequate rewards for authors and artists. He campaigned for copyright to exist for the life of the author, with an additional 60 years after that. He also proposed that existing statutes be codified under the bill, so that the case law that had arisen around the Statute of Anne was clarified.[68]

Talfourd's proposals led to opposition, and he reintroduced modified versions of them year on year. Printers, publishers and booksellers were concerned about the cost implications for original works, and for reprinting works that had fallen out of copyright.[69] Many within Parliament argued that the bill failed to take into account the public interest, including Lord Macaulay, who succeeded in defeating one of Talfourd's bills in 1841.[70] The Copyright Act 1842 passed, but "fell far short of Talfourd's dream of a uniform, consistent, codified law of copyright".[71] It extended copyright to life plus seven years, and, as part of the codification clauses, repealed the Statute of Anne.[68]

The Statute of Anne is traditionally seen as "a historic moment in the development of copyright", and the first statute in the world to provide for copyright.[49] Craig Joyce and Lyman Ray Patterson, writing in the Emory Law Journal, call this a "too simple understanding [that] ignores the statute's source", arguing that it is at best a derivative of the Licensing Act. Even considering this, however, the Statute of Anne was "the watershed event in Anglo-American copyright history ... transforming what had been the publishers' private law copyright into a public law grant".[5] Patterson, writing separately, does note the differences between the Licensing Act and the Statute of Anne; the question of censorship was, by 1710, out of the question, and in that regard the Statute is distinct, not providing for censorship.[72]

It also marked the first time that copyright had been vested primarily in the author, rather than the publisher, and also the first time that the injurious treatment of authors by publishers was recognised; regardless of what authors signed away, the second 14-year term of copyright would automatically return to them.[73] Even in the 21st century, the Statute of Anne is "frequently invoked by modern judges and academics as embodying the utilitarian underpinnings of copyright law".[6] In IceTV v Nine Network,[74] for example, the High Court of Australia noted that the title of the Statute "echoed explicitly the emphasis on the practical or utilitarian importance that certain seventeenth-century philosophers attached to knowledge and its encouragement in the scheme of human progress".[6] Despite "widely recognised flaws", the Act became a model copyright statute, both within the United Kingdom and internationally.[75]Christophe Geiger notes that it is "a difficult, almost impossible task" to analyse the relationship between the Statute of Anne and early French copyright law, both because it is difficult to make a direct connection, and because the ongoing debate over both has led to radically different interpretations of each nation's law.[76]

Similarly, Belgium took no direct influence from the Statute or English copyright theory, but Joris Deene of the University of Ghent identifies an indirect influence "at two levels"; the criteria for what constitutes copyrightable material, which comes from the work of English theorists such as Locke and Edward Young,[77] and the underlying justification of copyright law. In Belgium, this justification is both that copyright serves the public interest, and that copyright is a "private right" that serves the interests of individual authors. Both theories were taken into account in Donaldson v Beckett, as well as in the drafting of the Statute of Anne, and Deene infers that they subsequently affected the Belgian debates over their first copyright statute.[78] In the United States, the Copyright Clause of the United States Constitution and the first Federal copyright statute, the Copyright Act of 1790, both draw on the Statute of Anne. The 1790 Act contains provisions for a 14-year term of copyright and sections that provide for authors who published their works before 1790, both of which mirror the protection offered by the Statute 80 years previously.[79]

Deene, Joris (2010). The Influence of the Statute of Anne on Belgian copyright law. Global Copyright: 300 Years Since the Statute of Anne, from 1709 to Cyberspace. Edward Elgar. ISBN978-1-84980-831-6.

Geiger, Christophe (2010). The Influence (Past and Present) of the Statute of Anne in France. Global Copyright: 300 Years Since the Statute of Anne, from 1709 to Cyberspace. Edward Elgar. ISBN978-1-84980-831-6.

Hauhart, Robert C. (1983). "The Origin and Development of the British and American Patent and Copyright Laws". Whittier Law Review. Whittier Law School. 5 (1). ISSN0195-7643.

Patterson, L. Ray; Joyce, Craig (2003). "Copyright in 1791: An Essay Concerning the Founders' View of Copyright Power Granted to Congress in Article 1. Section 8, Clause 8 of the U.S. Constitution". Emory Law Journal. Emory University School of Law. 52 (1). ISSN0094-4076.

1.
Parliament of Great Britain
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The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. This lasted nearly a century, until the Acts of Union 1800 merged the separate British and Irish Parliaments into a single Parliament of the United Kingdom with effect from 1 January 1801. Following the Treaty of Union in 1706, Acts of Union ratifying the Treaty were passed in both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland, which created a new Kingdom of Great Britain. The Acts dissolved both parliaments, replacing them with a new parliament, referred to as the Parliament of Great Britain and it was not even considered necessary to hold a new general election. While Scots law and Scottish legislation remained separate, new legislation was thereafter to be enacted by the new parliament, after the Hanoverian King George I ascended the British throne in 1714 through the Act of Settlement of 1701, real power continued to shift away from the monarchy. George was a German ruler, spoke poor English, and remained interested in governing his dominions in continental Europe rather than in Britain. Reformers and Radicals sought parliamentary reform, but as the French Revolutionary Wars developed the British government became repressive against dissent and progress towards reform was stalled. During the first half of George IIIs reign, the still had considerable influence over Parliament. Most candidates for the House of Commons were identified as Whigs or Tories, reformers like William Beckford and Radicals beginning with John Wilkes called for reform of the system. In 1780 a draft programme of reform was drawn up by Charles James Fox and Thomas Brand Hollis and this included calls for the six points later adopted by the Chartists. Pitt had previously called for Parliament to begin to reform itself, proposals Pitt made in April 1785 to redistribute seats from the rotten boroughs to London and the counties were defeated in the House of Commons by 248 votes to 174

2.
Royal assent
–
Royal assent is the method by which a countrys constitutional monarch formally approves an act of that nations parliament, thus making it a law or letting it be promulgated as law. Royal assent is sometimes associated with elaborate ceremonies, however, royal assent is usually granted less ceremonially by letters patent. In other nations, such as Australia, the Governor-General merely signs the bill, in Canada, the Governor-General may give assent either in person at a ceremony held in the Senate or by a written declaration notifying parliament of his or her agreement to the bill. Before the Royal Assent by Commission Act of 1541 became law, the last time royal assent was given by the sovereign in person was during the rule of Queen Victoria at a prorogation on the 12th of August 1854. The Act was repealed and replaced by the Royal Assent Act of 1967, Royal assent is the final step required for a parliamentary bill to become law. -the sovereign may delay the bills assent through the use of his or her powers in near-revolutionary situations. -the sovereign may refuse royal assent on the advice of his or her ministers, under modern constitutional conventions, the sovereign acts on the advice of his or her ministers. Since these ministers most often maintain the support of parliament and are the ones who obtain the passage of bills, it is highly improbable that they would advise the sovereign to withhold assent. Hence, in practice, royal assent is always granted. The Monarch does not have the power to withhold a Bill from assenting, the last bill that was refused assent by the sovereign was the Scottish Militia Bill during Queen Annes reign in 1708. The so-called Model Parliament included bishops, abbots, earls, barons, in 1265, the Earl of Leicester irregularly called a full parliament without royal authorization. The body eventually came to be divided into two branches, bishops, abbots, earls, and barons formed the House of Lords, while the shire, the King would seek the advice and consent of both houses before making any law. The Parliament Acts 1911 and 1949 provide a second potential preamble if the House of Lords were to be excluded from the process, the power of parliament to pass bills was often thwarted by monarchs. Charles I dissolved parliament in 1629, after it passed motions critical of, during the eleven years of personal rule that followed, Charles performed legally dubious actions, such as raising taxes without parliaments approval. After the English Civil War, it was accepted that parliament should be summoned to meet regularly, the last Stuart monarch, Anne, similarly withheld on 11 March 1707, on the advice of her ministers, her assent from a bill for the settling of Militia in Scotland. No monarch has since withheld royal assent on a passed by the British parliament. During the rule of the succeeding Hanoverian dynasty, power was gradually exercised more by parliament, the first Hanoverian monarch, George I, relied on his ministers to a greater extent than did previous monarchs. However, George IV reluctantly granted his assent upon the advice of his ministers, thus, as the concept of ministerial responsibility has evolved, the power to withhold royal assent has fallen into disuse, both in the United Kingdom and in the other Commonwealth realms

3.
Acts of Parliament in the United Kingdom
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In the United Kingdom, Acts of Parliament are primary legislation passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. These devolved legislatures are able to create legislation regarding all but reserved and excepted matters, however, Acts of the Parliament of the United Kingdom remain supreme and can overrule the devolved legislatures. By convention, the Parliament of the United Kingdom does not do this without a legislative consent motion, a draft piece of legislation is called a bill, when this is passed by Parliament it becomes an Act and part of statute law. Acts of Parliament are classified as either Public General Acts or Local and Personal Acts, Bills are also classified as public, private, or hybrid. Public General Acts form the largest category of legislation, in principle affecting the general law applying to everyone across the entire United Kingdom. Most Public General Acts proceed through Parliament as a bill, occasionally, however. Private Acts are either local or personal in their effect, applying to a specifically named locality or legal person in a different from all others. Private bills are usually promoted by organisations, like local authorities or private companies, to give themselves powers beyond, or in conflict with, Private bills only change the law as it applies to specific individuals or organisations, rather than the general public. Groups or individuals potentially affected by these changes can petition Parliament against the bill and present their objections to committees of MPs. Other private bills may affect particular companies established by Act of Parliament such as TSB Bank and Transas. Private bills, common in the 19th century, are now rare, as new planning legislation introduced in the 1960s removed the need for many of them, only a few, if any, are passed each year. They are subject to a different procedure from that for public bills, described above, Parliamentary authorities maintain a list of all private bills before parliament. Hybrid bills combine elements of public and private Acts. While they propose to make changes to the law, they also contain provisions applying to specific individuals or bodies. Recent examples include the Crossrail Bill, a bill to build a railway across London from west to east. Once passed, hybrid bills are printed as part of the Public General Acts, Parliamentary authorities maintain a list of all hybrid bills before parliament. It is important not to private bills with private members bills. The only difference from regular public bills is that they are brought forward by a private rather than by the government

4.
Copyright
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Copyright is a legal right created by the law of a country that grants the creator of an original work exclusive rights for its use and distribution. This is usually only for a limited time, the exclusive rights are not absolute but limited by limitations and exceptions to copyright law, including fair use. A major limitation on copyright is that copyright protects only the expression of ideas. Copyright is a form of property, applicable to certain forms of creative work. Some, but not all jurisdictions require fixing copyrighted works in a tangible form and it is often shared among multiple authors, each of whom holds a set of rights to use or license the work, and who are commonly referred to as rights holders. These rights frequently include reproduction, control over derivative works, distribution, public performance, copyrights are considered territorial rights, which means that they do not extend beyond the territory of a specific jurisdiction. While many aspects of copyright laws have been standardized through international copyright agreements. Typically, the duration of a copyright spans the authors life plus 50 to 100 years, some countries require certain copyright formalities to establishing copyright, but most recognize copyright in any completed work, without formal registration. Generally, copyright is enforced as a matter, though some jurisdictions do apply criminal sanctions. Most jurisdictions recognize copyright limitations, allowing fair exceptions to the exclusivity of copyright. Copyright came about with the invention of the press and with wider literacy. As a legal concept, its origins in Britain were from a reaction to printers monopolies at the beginning of the 18th century, Copyright laws allow products of creative human activities, such as literary and artistic production, to be preferentially exploited and thus incentivized. Different cultural attitudes, social organizations, economic models and legal frameworks are seen to account for why copyright emerged in Europe and not, for example, however, with copyright laws, intellectual production comes to be seen as a product of an individual, with attendant rights. The most significant point is that patent and copyright laws support the expansion of the range of human activities that can be commodified. This parallels the ways in which led to the commodification of many aspects of social life that earlier had no monetary or economic value per se. Often seen as the first real copyright law, the 1709 British Statute of Anne gave the rights for a fixed period. The act also alluded to individual rights of the artist and it began, Whereas Printers, Booksellers, and other Persons, have of late frequently taken the Liberty of Printing. Books, and other Writings, without the Consent of the Authors. to their very great Detriment, and too often to the Ruin of them and their Families

5.
Anne, Queen of Great Britain
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Anne became Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland on 8 March 1702. On 1 May 1707, under the Acts of Union, two of her realms, the kingdoms of England and Scotland, united as a sovereign state known as Great Britain. She continued to reign as Queen of Great Britain and Ireland until her death, Anne was born in the reign of her uncle Charles II, who had no legitimate children. Her father, James, was first in line to the throne and his suspected Roman Catholicism was unpopular in England, and on Charless instructions Anne was raised as an Anglican. Three years after he succeeded Charles, James was deposed in the Glorious Revolution of 1688, Annes Dutch Protestant brother-in-law and cousin William III became joint monarch with his wife, Annes elder sister Mary II. Although the sisters had been close, disagreements over Annes finances, status and choice of acquaintances arose shortly after Marys accession, William and Mary had no children. After Marys death in 1694, William continued as sole monarch until he was succeeded by Anne upon his death in 1702, as queen, Anne favoured moderate Tory politicians, who were more likely to share her Anglican religious views than their opponents, the Whigs. The Whigs grew more powerful during the course of the War of the Spanish Succession and her close friendship with Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough, turned sour as the result of political differences. Anne was plagued by ill health throughout her life, from her thirties onwards, she grew increasingly lame and obese. Despite seventeen pregnancies by her husband, Prince George of Denmark, she died without any surviving children and was the last monarch of the House of Stuart. Anne was born at 11,39 p. m. on 6 February 1665 at St Jamess Palace, London, the child and second daughter of James, Duke of York. At her Anglican baptism in the Chapel Royal at St Jamess, her sister, Mary, was one of her godparents, along with the Duchess of Monmouth. The Duke and Duchess of York had eight children, but Anne, as a child, Anne suffered from an eye condition, which manifested as excessive watering known as defluxion. For medical treatment, she was sent to France, where she lived with her grandmother, Queen Henrietta Maria. Following her grandmothers death in 1669, Anne lived with an aunt, Henrietta Anne, on the sudden death of her aunt in 1670, Anne returned to England. Her mother died the following year, as was traditional in the royal family, Anne and her sister were brought up separated from their father in their own establishment at Richmond, London. On the instructions of Charles II, they were raised as Protestants, placed in the care of Colonel Edward and Lady Frances Villiers, their education was focused on the teachings of the Anglican church. Henry Compton, Bishop of London, was appointed as Annes preceptor, around 1671, Anne first made the acquaintance of Sarah Jennings, who later became her close friend and one of her most influential advisors

6.
Public domain
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The term public domain has two senses of meaning. Anything published is out in the domain in the sense that it is available to the public. Once published, news and information in books is in the public domain, in the sense of intellectual property, works in the public domain are those whose exclusive intellectual property rights have expired, have been forfeited, or are inapplicable. Examples for works not covered by copyright which are therefore in the domain, are the formulae of Newtonian physics, cooking recipes. Examples for works actively dedicated into public domain by their authors are reference implementations of algorithms, NIHs ImageJ. The term is not normally applied to situations where the creator of a work retains residual rights, as rights are country-based and vary, a work may be subject to rights in one country and be in the public domain in another. Some rights depend on registrations on a basis, and the absence of registration in a particular country, if required. Although the term public domain did not come into use until the mid-18th century, the Romans had a large proprietary rights system where they defined many things that cannot be privately owned as res nullius, res communes, res publicae and res universitatis. The term res nullius was defined as not yet appropriated. The term res communes was defined as things that could be enjoyed by mankind, such as air, sunlight. The term res publicae referred to things that were shared by all citizens, when the first early copyright law was first established in Britain with the Statute of Anne in 1710, public domain did not appear. However, similar concepts were developed by British and French jurists in the eighteenth century, instead of public domain they used terms such as publici juris or propriété publique to describe works that were not covered by copyright law. The phrase fall in the domain can be traced to mid-nineteenth century France to describe the end of copyright term. In this historical context Paul Torremans describes copyright as a coral reef of private right jutting up from the ocean of the public domain. Because copyright law is different from country to country, Pamela Samuelson has described the public domain as being different sizes at different times in different countries. According to James Boyle this definition underlines common usage of the public domain and equates the public domain to public property. However, the usage of the public domain can be more granular. Such a definition regards work in copyright as private property subject to fair use rights, the materials that compose our cultural heritage must be free for all living to use no less than matter necessary for biological survival

7.
United States
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Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci

8.
Utilitarianism
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Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that states that the best action is the one that maximizes utility. Utility is defined in various ways, usually in terms of the well-being of sentient entities, such as human beings and other animals. Jeremy Bentham, the founder of utilitarianism, described utility as the sum of all pleasure that results from an action, Utilitarianism is a version of consequentialism, which states that the consequences of any action are the only standard of right and wrong. Unlike other forms of consequentialism, such as egoism, utilitarianism considers all interests equally, proponents of utilitarianism have disagreed on a number of points, such as whether actions should be chosen based on their results or whether agents should conform to rules that maximize utility. There is also disagreement as to total or average utility should be maximized. It has been applied to social economics, the crisis of global poverty, the ethics of raising animals for food. Benthamism, the philosophy founded by Jeremy Bentham, was substantially modified by his successor John Stuart Mill. In 1861, Mill acknowledged in a footnote that, though believing himself to be the first person who brought the word utilitarian into use, rather, he adopted it from a passing expression in John Galts 1821 novel Annals of the Parish. Mill seems to have been unaware that Bentham had used the term utilitarian in his 1781 letter to George Wilson, in Chinese philosophy the Mohists and their successors the Chinese Legalists might be considered utilitarians, or at least the earliest form of consequentialism. The later denotes the universal Way, however, the Mohists sought to promote not individual happiness, but public or collective goods, material wealth, a large population or family, and social order. On the other hand, the Legalist Han Fei is motivated almost totally from the point of view. The importance of happiness as an end for humans has long been recognized, Happiness was also explored in depth by Aquinas. Different varieties of consequentialism also existed in the ancient and medieval world, Machiavelli was also an exponent of consequentialism. He believed that the actions of a state, however cruel or ruthless they may be, Utilitarianism as a distinct ethical position only emerged in the eighteenth century. Although utilitarianism is thought to start with Jeremy Bentham, there were earlier writers who presented theories that were strikingly similar. Hume studied the works of, and corresponded with, Francis Hutcheson, in the same way, moral evil, or vice, is proportionate to the number of people made to suffer. The best action is the one that procures the greatest happiness of the greatest numbers—and the worst is the one that causes the most misery, in the first three editions of the book, Hutcheson included various mathematical algorithms. to compute the Morality of any Actions. In this, he pre-figured the hedonic calculus of Bentham, some claim that John Gay developed the first systematic theory of utilitarian ethics

9.
Printing press
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A printing press is a device for applying pressure to an inked surface resting upon a print medium, thereby transferring the ink. The printing press was invented in the Holy Roman Empire by the German Johannes Gutenberg around 1440, the printing press spread within several decades to over two hundred cities in a dozen European countries. By 1500, printing presses in operation throughout Western Europe had already produced more than twenty million volumes, in the 16th century, with presses spreading further afield, their output rose tenfold to an estimated 150 to 200 million copies. The operation of a press became so synonymous with the enterprise of printing that it lent its name to a new branch of media. The sharp rise of learning and literacy amongst the middle class led to an increased demand for books which the time-consuming hand-copying method fell far short of accommodating. Technologies preceding the press led to the presss invention included, manufacturing of paper, development of ink, woodblock printing. At the same time, a number of products and technological processes had reached a level of maturity which allowed their potential use for printing purposes. The device was used from very early on in urban contexts as a cloth press for printing patterns. Gutenberg may have also inspired by the paper presses which had spread through the German lands since the late 14th century. Gutenberg adopted the design, thereby mechanizing the printing process. Printing, however, put a demand on the quite different from pressing. Gutenberg adapted the construction so that the power exerted by the platen on the paper was now applied both evenly and with the required sudden elasticity. To speed up the process, he introduced a movable undertable with a plane surface on which the sheets could be swiftly changed. The known examples range from Germany to England to Italy, however, the various techniques employed did not have the refinement and efficiency needed to become widely accepted. Gutenberg greatly improved the process by treating typesetting and printing as two separate work steps, a goldsmith by profession, he created his type pieces from a lead-based alloy which suited printing purposes so well that it is still used today. The mass production of metal letters was achieved by his key invention of a hand mould. Another factor conducive to printing arose from the existing in the format of the codex. Considered the most important advance in the history of the prior to printing itself

10.
Kingdom of England
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In the early 11th century the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, united by Æthelstan, became part of the North Sea Empire of Cnut the Great, a personal union between England, Denmark and Norway. The completion of the conquest of Wales by Edward I in 1284 put Wales under the control of the English crown, from the accession of James I in 1603, the Stuart dynasty ruled England in personal union with Scotland and Ireland. Under the Stuarts, the kingdom plunged into war, which culminated in the execution of Charles I in 1649. The monarchy returned in 1660, but the Civil War had established the precedent that an English monarch cannot govern without the consent of Parliament and this concept became legally established as part of the Glorious Revolution of 1688. From this time the kingdom of England, as well as its state the United Kingdom. On 1 May 1707, under the terms of the Acts of Union 1707, the Anglo-Saxons referred to themselves as the Engle or the Angelcynn, originally names of the Angles. They called their land Engla land, meaning land of the English, by Æthelweard Latinized Anglia, from an original Anglia vetus, the name Engla land became England by haplology during the Middle English period. The Latin name was Anglia or Anglorum terra, the Old French, by the 14th century, England was also used in reference to the entire island of Great Britain. The standard title for all monarchs from Æthelstan until the time of King John was Rex Anglorum, Canute the Great, a Dane, was the first king to call himself King of England. In the Norman period Rex Anglorum remained standard, with use of Rex Anglie. The Empress Matilda styled herself Domina Anglorum, from the time of King John onwards all other titles were eschewed in favour of Rex or Regina Anglie. In 1604 James VI and I, who had inherited the English throne the previous year, the English and Scottish parliaments, however, did not recognise this title until the Acts of Union of 1707. The kingdom of England emerged from the unification of the early medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdoms known as the Heptarchy, East Anglia, Mercia, Northumbria, Kent, Essex, Sussex. The Viking invasions of the 9th century upset the balance of power between the English kingdoms, and native Anglo-Saxon life in general, the English lands were unified in the 10th century in a reconquest completed by King Æthelstan in 927 CE. During the Heptarchy, the most powerful king among the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms might become acknowledged as Bretwalda, the decline of Mercia allowed Wessex to become more powerful. It absorbed the kingdoms of Kent and Sussex in 825, the kings of Wessex became increasingly dominant over the other kingdoms of England during the 9th century. In 827, Northumbria submitted to Egbert of Wessex at Dore, in 886, Alfred the Great retook London, which he apparently regarded as a turning point in his reign. The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle says that all of the English people not subject to the Danes submitted themselves to King Alfred, asser added that Alfred, king of the Anglo-Saxons, restored the city of London splendidly

11.
William Caxton
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William Caxton was an English merchant, diplomat, writer and printer. He is thought to be the first Englishman to introduce a printing press into England, in 1476, and was the first English retailer of printed books. His parentage and date of birth are not known for certain, but he may have been born between 1415 and 1424, in the Weald or wood land of Kent, perhaps in Hadlow or Tenterden. In 1438 he was apprenticed to Robert Large, a wealthy London silk mercer, shortly after the death of Large, Caxton moved to Bruges in Belgium. Caxton was settled in Bruges by 1450, Caxton went onto became a successful in business and governor of the Company of Merchant Adventurers of London. At this time Bruges was a cultured city, this caused Caxton to become interested in reading. During his business travels, he observed the new printing industry in Cologne which led him to start a press in Bruges. He also undertook the translation of Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye, at this time Margaret sister of Edward the IV married the Duke of Burgundy, they moved to Bruges. Caxton became friendly with the Duchess and it was her who encouraged Caxton to continue his unfinished translation of the Troy stories, now known as the Iliad, which was completed in 1471. Caxton set up a press at Westminster in 1476 due to the demand in his translation on his return. The first book known to have been produced there was an edition of Chaucers The Canterbury Tales and he printed perhaps the earliest verses of the Bible to be printed in English, as well as chivalric romances, classical works and English and Roman histories. He translated into English and edited many of the works himself and he is credited with the first English translation of Aesops Fables, in 1484. The rushed publishing schedule and his inadequacies as a translator led both to wholesale transfers of French words into English and to misunderstandings, Caxton is credited with helping to standardise the various dialects of English through his printed works. In 2002, Caxton was named among the 100 Greatest Britons in a BBC poll, Caxtons family have been fairly certainly found to be his parents, Philip and Dionisia, and a brother, Philip. His date of birth is unknown, records place it in the region of 1415–1424, based on the fact that his apprenticeship fees were paid in 1438. Caxton would have been 14 at the date of apprenticeship, in the preface to his first printed work The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye, he claims to have been born and educated in the Weald of Kent. Oral tradition in Tonbridge claims that Caxton was born there, the same with Tenterden, one of the manors of Hadlow was Caustons, owned by the Caxton family. A house in Hadlow reputed to be the birthplace of William Caxton was dismantled in 1936 and incorporated into a house rebuilt in Forest Row

12.
Richard III of England
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Richard III was King of England from 1483 until his death in 1485, at the age of 32, in the Battle of Bosworth Field. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty and his defeat at Bosworth Field, the last decisive battle of the Wars of the Roses, marked the end of the Middle Ages in England. He is the subject of the historical play Richard III by William Shakespeare, when his brother King Edward IV died in April 1483, Richard was named Lord Protector of the realm for Edwards son and successor, the 12-year-old Edward V. As the young king travelled to London from Ludlow, Richard met and escorted him to lodgings in the Tower of London, on 25 June, an assembly of Lords and commoners endorsed the claims. The following day, Richard III began his reign, and he was crowned on 6 July 1483. The young princes were not seen in public after August, and accusations circulated that the boys had been murdered on Richards orders, there were two major rebellions against Richard. The first, in October 1483, was led by allies of Edward IV and Richards former ally, Henry Stafford, 2nd Duke of Buckingham. In August 1485, Henry Tudor and his uncle, Jasper Tudor, Henry Tudor landed in southern Wales with a small contingent of French troops and marched through his birthplace, Pembrokeshire, recruiting soldiers. Henrys force engaged Richards army and defeated it at the Battle of Bosworth Field in Leicestershire, Richard was struck down in the conflict, making him the last English king to die in battle on home soil and the first since Harold Godwinson. Henry then ascended the throne as Henry VII, after the battle Richards corpse was taken to Leicester and buried without pomp. His original tomb monument is believed to have been removed during the Reformation, in 2012, an archaeological excavation was commissioned by the Richard III Society on a city council car park on the site once occupied by Greyfriars Priory Church. Richards remains were reburied in Leicester Cathedral on 26 March 2015 and they returned to England following the defeat of the Lancastrians at the Battle of Towton and participated in the coronation of Richards eldest brother as King Edward IV in June 1461. At this time Richard was named Duke of Gloucester and made a Knight of the Garter and Knight of the Bath, by the age of seventeen, he had an independent command. With some interruptions, Richard stayed at Middleham either from late 1461 until early 1465, while at Warwicks estate, he probably met Francis Lovell, a strong supporter later in his life, and Warwicks younger daughter, his future wife Anne Neville. As the relationship between the king and Warwick became strained, Edward IV opposed the match, during Warwicks lifetime, George was the only royal brother to marry one of his daughters, the eldest, Isabel, on 12 July 1469, without the kings permission. George joined his father-in-laws revolt against the king, while Richard remained loyal to Edward, in 1468, Richards sister Margaret had married Charles the Bold, the Duke of Burgundy, and the brothers could expect a welcome there. Although only eighteen years old, Richard played crucial roles in the battles of Barnet, during his adolescence, Richard developed idiopathic scoliosis. Following a decisive Yorkist victory over the Lancastrians at the Battle of Tewkesbury, Richard married Anne Neville, by the end of 1470 Anne had previously been wedded to Edward of Westminster, only son of Henry VI, to seal her fathers allegiance to the Lancastrian party

13.
Protectionism
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Protectionist policies protect the producers, businesses and workers of the import-competing sector in a country from foreign competitors. According to proponents, these policies can counteract unfair trade practices, protectionists may favor the policy in order to decrease the trade deficit, maintain employment in certain sectors, or favor the growth of certain industries. In recent years, protectionism has become closely aligned with the anti-globalization movement, There is a broad consensus among economists that the impact of protectionism on economic growth is largely negative, although the impact on specific industries and groups of people may be positive. The doctrine of protectionism contrasts with the doctrine of free trade, a variety of policies have been used to achieve protectionist goals. Tariff rates usually vary according to the type of goods imported, import tariffs will increase the cost to importers, and increase the price of imported goods in the local markets, thus lowering the quantity of goods imported, to favour local producers. Tariffs may also be imposed on exports, and in an economy with floating exchange rates, however, since export tariffs are often perceived as hurting local industries, while import tariffs are perceived as helping local industries, export tariffs are seldom implemented. Import quotas, To reduce the quantity and therefore increase the price of imported goods. The economic effects of a quota is similar to that of a tariff. Economists often suggest that import licenses be auctioned to the highest bidder, administrative barriers, Countries are sometimes accused of using their various administrative rules as a way to introduce barriers to imports. Anti-dumping legislation, Supporters of anti-dumping laws argue that they prevent dumping of cheaper foreign goods that would cause local firms to close down, however, in practice, anti-dumping laws are usually used to impose trade tariffs on foreign exporters. Direct subsidies, Government subsidies are given to local firms that cannot compete well against imports. These subsidies are purported to protect jobs, and to help local firms adjust to the world markets. Export subsidies, Export subsidies are often used by governments to increase exports, Export subsidies have the opposite effect of export tariffs because exporters get payment, which is a percentage or proportion of the value of exported. Export subsidies increase the amount of trade, and in a country with floating exchange rates, have similar to import subsidies. Exchange rate control, A government may intervene in the exchange market to lower the value of its currency by selling its currency in the foreign exchange market. Doing so will raise the cost of imports and lower the cost of exports, international patent systems, There is an argument for viewing national patent systems as a cloak for protectionist trade policies at a national level. Peter Drahos explains that States realized that patent systems could be used to cloak protectionist strategies, There were also reputational advantages for states to be seen to be sticking to intellectual property systems. In the modern trade arena many other initiatives besides tariffs have been called protectionist, for example, some commentators, such as Jagdish Bhagwati, see developed countries efforts in imposing their own labor or environmental standards as protectionism

14.
Lord Chancellor
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The Lord Chancellor, formally the Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, is a senior functionary in the government of the United Kingdom. They are appointed by the Sovereign on the advice of the Prime Minister, the Lord Chancellor is the second highest ranking of the Great Officers of State, ranking after only the Lord High Steward. Prior to the Union there were separate Lords Chancellor for England and Wales, the Lord Chancellor is a member of the Cabinet and, by law, is responsible for the efficient functioning and independence of the courts. In 2007 there were a number of changes to the legal system, the current Lord Chancellor is Elizabeth Truss, who is also Secretary of State for Justice. One of the Lord Chancellors responsibilities is to act as the custodian of the Great Seal of the Realm, a Lord Keeper of the Great Seal may be appointed instead of a Lord Chancellor. The two offices entail exactly the same duties, the distinction is in the mode of appointment. The seal is then said to be in commission, since the 19th century, however, only Lord Chancellors have been appointed, the other offices having fallen into disuse. The office of Lord Chancellor of England may trace its origins to the Carolingian monarchy, in England, the office dates at least as far back as the Norman Conquest, and possibly earlier. Some give the first Chancellor of England as Angmendus, in 605, other sources suggest that the first to appoint a Chancellor was Edward the Confessor, who is said to have adopted the practice of sealing documents instead of personally signing them. A clerk of Edwards, Regenbald, was named chancellor in some documents from Edwards reign, in any event, the office has been continuously occupied since the Norman Conquest. The chancellor headed the office or chancery. Formerly, the Lord Chancellor was almost always a churchman, as during the Middle Ages the clergy were amongst the few men of the realm. The Lord Chancellor performed multiple functions—he was the Keeper of the Great Seal, the royal chaplain. Thus, the position emerged as one of the most important ones in government and he was only outranked in government by the Justiciar. As one of the Kings ministers, the Lord Chancellor attended the curia regis or Royal Court, if a bishop, the Lord Chancellor received a writ of summons, if an ecclesiastic of a lower degree or, if a layman, he attended without any summons. The curia regis would later evolve into Parliament, the Lord Chancellor becoming the prolocutor of its upper house, as was confirmed by a statute passed during the reign of Henry VIII, a Lord Chancellor could preside over the House of Lords even if not a Lord himself. The Lord Chancellors judicial duties also evolved through his role in the curia regis, petitions for justice were normally addressed to the King and the curia, but in 1280, Edward I instructed his justices to examine and deal with petitions themselves as the Court of Kings Bench. Important petitions were to be sent to the Lord Chancellor for his decision, by the reign of Edward III, this chancellery function developed into a separate tribunal for the Lord Chancellor

15.
Lutheranism
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Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestant Christianity which identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German friar, ecclesiastical reformer and theologian. Luthers efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched the Protestant Reformation in the German-speaking territories of the Holy Roman Empire. Lutheranism advocates a doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone on the basis of Scripture alone and this is in contrast to the belief of the Catholic Church, defined at the Council of Trent, concerning authority coming from both the Scriptures and Tradition. In addition, Lutheranism accepts the teachings of the first seven ecumenical councils of the undivided Christian Church, unlike Calvinism, Lutherans retain many of the liturgical practices and sacramental teachings of the pre-Reformation Church, with a particular emphasis on the Eucharist, or Lords Supper. Lutheran theology differs from Reformed theology in Christology, the purpose of Gods Law, the grace, the concept of perseverance of the saints. Today, Lutheranism is one of the largest denominations of Protestantism, with approximately 80 million adherents, it constitutes the third most common Protestant denomination after historically Pentecostal denominations and Anglicanism. The Lutheran World Federation, the largest communion of Lutheran churches, Other Lutheran organizations include the International Lutheran Council and the Confessional Evangelical Lutheran Conference, as well as independent churches. The name Lutheran originated as a term used against Luther by German Scholastic theologian Dr. Johann Maier von Eck during the Leipzig Debate in July 1519. Eck and other Catholics followed the practice of naming a heresy after its leader. Martin Luther always disliked the term Lutheran, preferring the term Evangelical, which was derived from euangelion, the followers of John Calvin, Huldrych Zwingli, and other theologians linked to the Reformed tradition also began to use that term. To distinguish the two groups, others began to refer to the two groups as Evangelical Lutheran and Evangelical Reformed. As time passed by, the word Evangelical was dropped, Lutherans themselves began to use the term Lutheran in the middle of the 16th century, in order to distinguish themselves from other groups such as the Philippists and Calvinists. In 1597, theologians in Wittenberg defined the title Lutheran as referring to the true church, Lutheranism has its roots in the work of Martin Luther, who sought to reform the Western Church to what he considered a more biblical foundation. Lutheranism spread through all of Scandinavia during the 16th century, as the monarch of Denmark–Norway, through Baltic-German and Swedish rule, Lutheranism also spread into Estonia and Latvia. Since 1520, regular Lutheran services have been held in Copenhagen, under the reign of Frederick I, Denmark-Norway remained officially Catholic. Although Frederick initially pledged to persecute Lutherans, he adopted a policy of protecting Lutheran preachers and reformers. During Fredericks reign, Lutheranism made significant inroads in Denmark, at an open meeting in Copenhagen attended by the king in 1536, the people shouted, We will stand by the holy Gospel, and do not want such bishops anymore. Fredericks son Christian was openly Lutheran, which prevented his election to the throne upon his fathers death, however, following his victory in the civil war that followed, in 1537 he became Christian III and advanced the Reformation in Denmark-Norway

16.
Henry VIII of England
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Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. Henry was the second Tudor monarch, succeeding his father, Henry VII, Henry is best known for his six marriages and, in particular, his efforts to have his first marriage, to Catherine of Aragon, annulled. Despite his resulting excommunication, Henry remained a believer in core Catholic theological teachings, domestically, Henry is known for his radical changes to the English Constitution, ushering in the theory of the divine right of kings to England. Besides asserting the supremacy over the Church of England, he greatly expanded royal power during his reign. Charges of treason and heresy were commonly used to quash dissent, and he achieved many of his political aims through the work of his chief ministers, some of whom were banished or executed when they fell out of his favour. Thomas Wolsey, Thomas More, Thomas Cromwell, Richard Rich and his contemporaries considered Henry in his prime to be an attractive, educated, and accomplished king, and he has been described as one of the most charismatic rulers to sit on the English throne. He was an author and composer, as he aged, Henry became severely obese and his health suffered, contributing to his death in 1547. He is frequently characterised in his life as a lustful, egotistical, harsh. He was succeeded by his son Edward VI, born 28 June 1491 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London, Henry Tudor was the third child and second son of Henry VII and Elizabeth of York. Of the young Henrys six siblings, only three – Arthur, Prince of Wales, Margaret, and Mary – survived infancy and he was baptised by Richard Fox, the Bishop of Exeter, at a church of the Observant Franciscans close to the palace. In 1493, at the age of two, Henry was appointed Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports. He was subsequently appointed Earl Marshal of England and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland at age three, and was inducted into the Order of the Bath soon after. The day after the ceremony he was created Duke of York, in May 1495, he was appointed to the Order of the Garter. Henry was given an education from leading tutors, becoming fluent in Latin and French. Not much is known about his early life – save for his appointments – because he was not expected to become king, as Duke of York, Henry used the arms of his father as king, differenced by a label of three points ermine. In 1502, Arthur died at the age of 15 of sweating sickness, Arthurs death thrust all his duties upon his younger brother, the 10-year-old Henry. After a little debate, Henry became the new Duke of Cornwall in October 1502, Henry VII gave the boy few tasks. Young Henry was strictly supervised and did not appear in public, as a result, the young Henry would later ascend the throne untrained in the exacting art of kingship

17.
Privy Council of England
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The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England. Its members were often members of the House of Lords. The Privy Council of England was an institution, advising the Sovereign on the exercise of the Royal prerogative. It issued executive orders known as Orders in Council and also had judicial functions, during the reigns of the Norman monarchs, the English Crown was advised by a royal court, which consisted of magnates, clergy and officers of the Crown. This body originally concerned itself with advising the Sovereign on legislation, administration, later, different bodies assuming distinct functions evolved from the court. The courts of law took over the business of dispensing justice, nevertheless, the Council retained the power to hear legal disputes, either in the first instance or on appeal. Furthermore, laws made by the Sovereign on the advice of the Council, powerful Sovereigns often used the body to circumvent the courts and Parliament. During Henry VIIIs reign, the Sovereign, on the advice of the Council, was allowed to enact laws by mere proclamation, the legislative pre-eminence of Parliament was not restored until after Henry VIIIs death. Though the royal Council retained legislative and judicial responsibilities, it became an administrative body. The Council consisted of forty members in 1553, but the Sovereign relied on a smaller committee, the Council developed significantly during the reign of Elizabeth I, gaining political experience, so that there were real differences between the Privy Council of the 1560s and that of the 1600s. By the end of the English Civil War, the monarchy, House of Lords, the remaining house of Parliament, the House of Commons, instituted a Council of State to execute laws and to direct administrative policy. The forty-one members of the Council were elected by the Commons, the body was headed by Oliver Cromwell, in 1653, however, Cromwell became Lord Protector, and the Council was reduced to between thirteen and twenty-one members, all elected by the Commons. In 1657, the Commons granted Cromwell even greater powers, some of which were reminiscent of those enjoyed by monarchs, the Council became known as the Protectors Privy Council, its members were appointed by the Lord Protector, subject to Parliaments approval. In 1659, shortly before the restoration of the monarchy, the Protectors Council was abolished, charles II restored the royal Privy Council, but he, like previous Stuart monarchs, chose to rely on a small committee of advisers. The Acts of Union 1707 united England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain, during the reign of Elizabeth I, the Council is recorded under the title The Queens Majesties most Honourable Privy-Council. The Sovereign, when acting on the Councils advice, was known as the King-in-Council or Queen-in-Council, the members of the Council were collectively known as The Lords of His Majestys Most Honourable Privy Council, or sometimes The Lords and others of. ). The chief officer of the body was the Lord President of the Council, another important official was the Clerk, whose signature was appended to all orders made. Membership was generally for life, although the death of a monarch brought an immediate dissolution of the Council, the Privy Council of England was one of the four principal councils of the Sovereign

18.
Mary I of England
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Mary I was the Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death. Her executions of Protestants led to the posthumous sobriquet Bloody Mary and she was the only child of Henry VIII by his first wife Catherine of Aragon to survive to adulthood. Her younger half-brother Edward VI succeeded their father in 1547, when Edward became mortally ill in 1553, he attempted to remove Mary from the line of succession because of religious differences. On his death their first cousin once removed, Lady Jane Grey, was proclaimed queen, Mary assembled a force in East Anglia and deposed Jane, who was ultimately beheaded. Mary was—excluding the disputed reigns of Jane and the Empress Matilda—the first queen regnant of England, in 1554, Mary married Philip of Spain, becoming queen consort of Habsburg Spain on his accession in 1556. Mary is remembered for her restoration of Roman Catholicism after her half-brothers short-lived Protestant reign, during her five-year reign, she had over 280 religious dissenters burned at the stake in the Marian persecutions. After her death in 1558, her re-establishment of Roman Catholicism was reversed by her younger half-sister and successor Elizabeth I, daughter of Henry, Mary was born on 18 February 1516 at the Palace of Placentia in Greenwich, London. She was the child of King Henry VIII by his first wife, Catherine of Aragon. Her mother had many miscarriages, before Marys birth, four previous pregnancies had resulted in a stillborn daughter and she was baptised into the Catholic faith at the Church of the Observant Friars in Greenwich three days after her birth. Her godparents included her great-aunt the Countess of Devon, Lord Chancellor Thomas Wolsey, Henry VIIIs cousin once removed, Margaret Pole, Countess of Salisbury, stood sponsor for Marys confirmation, which was held immediately after the baptism. The following year, Mary became a godmother herself when she was named as one of the sponsors of her cousin Frances Brandon, in 1520, the Countess of Salisbury was appointed Marys governess. Sir John Hussey, later Lord Hussey, was her chamberlain from 1530, in July 1520, when scarcely four and a half years old, she entertained a visiting French delegation with a performance on the virginals. By the age of nine, Mary could read and write Latin and she studied French, Spanish, music, dance, and perhaps Greek. Henry VIII doted on his daughter and boasted to the Venetian ambassador Sebastian Giustiniani, also, as the miniature portrait of her shows, Mary had, like both her parents, a very fair complexion, pale blue eyes and red or reddish-golden hair. She was also ruddy cheeked, a trait she inherited from her father, despite his affection for Mary, Henry was deeply disappointed that his marriage had produced no sons. By the time Mary was nine years old, it was apparent that Henry and Catherine would have no more children, in 1525, Henry sent Mary to the border of Wales to preside, presumably in name only, over the Council of Wales and the Marches. She was given her own based at Ludlow Castle and many of the royal prerogatives normally reserved for the Prince of Wales. Vives and others called her the Princess of Wales, although she was never technically invested with the title and she appears to have spent three years in the Welsh Marches, making regular visits to her fathers court, before returning permanently to the home counties around London in mid-1528

19.
Royal charter
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A royal charter is a formal document issued by a monarch as letters patent, granting a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organisations such as cities or universities, Charters should be distinguished from warrants and letters of appointment, as they have perpetual effect. Typically, a Royal Charter is produced as a high-quality work of calligraphy on vellum, the British monarchy has issued over 980 royal charters. Of these about 750 remain in existence, the earliest was to the town of Tain in 1066, making it the oldest Royal Burgh in Scotland, followed by the University of Cambridge in 1231. Charters continue to be issued by the British Crown, a recent example being that awarded to the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity, Charters have been used in Europe since medieval times to create cities. The date that such a charter is granted is considered to be when a city is founded, at one time, a royal charter was the sole means by which an incorporated body could be formed, but other means are generally used nowadays instead. In the period before 1958,32 higher education institutes had been created by royal charter and these were typically engineering or technical institutions rather than universities. Royal decrees can therefore no longer grant higher education status or university status. A Royal Charter is granted by Order in Council, either creating an incorporated body and this is an exercise of the Royal Prerogative, and, in Canada, there are hundreds of organisations under Royal Charters. Such organisations include charities, businesses, colleges, universities, today, it is mostly charities and professional institutions who receive Royal Charters. Application for a charter is a petition to the Queen-in-Council, however, meeting these benchmarks does not guarantee the issuance of a Royal Charter. Companies, corporations, and societies in Canada founded under or augmented by a Royal Charter include, Royal Charter was issued in August 1826 to purchase and develop lands. Purchased the Crown Reserve of 1,384,413 acres, cities under Royal Charter are not subject to municipal Acts of Parliament applied generally to other municipalities, and instead are governed by legislation applicable to each city individually. The Royal Charter codifies the laws applied to the particular city, the Universitys Pontifical Charter was granted by Pope Leo XIII in 1889. Several Canadian private schools were founded or reconstituted under Royal Charter, the Royal Gibraltar Post Office was granted Royal Charter in 2005. The Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club obtained Royal Charter in 1959 and it is one of the three banknote-issuing banks in Hong Kong. The Royal Asiatic Society Hong Kong Branch Chartered originally in 1847, disbanded 1859, the Institution of Engineers was incorporated by royal charter in 1935. A number of Irish institutions retain the Royal prefix, even though Republic of Ireland severed all remaining connections between the state and the British monarch in 1949, the University of South Africa received a Royal Charter in 1877

20.
Star Chamber
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In modern usage, legal or administrative bodies with strict, arbitrary rulings and secretive proceedings are sometimes called, metaphorically or poetically, star chambers. This is a term and intended to cast doubt on the legitimacy of the proceedings. Star Chamber can also be used in its meaning, for instance when a politician uses parliamentary privilege to attack a powerful organisation or person. The first reference to the chamber is in 1398, as the Sterred chambre. Both forms recur throughout the century, with Sterred Chambre last attested as appearing in the Supremacy of the Crown Act 1534. Alternatively, William Blackstone, a notable English jurist writing in 1769 and this term was in use until 1290, when Edward I had all Jews expelled from England. Blackstone thought the Starr Chamber might originally have been used for the deposition, however, the Oxford English Dictionary gives this etymology no claim to consideration. Other etymological theories mentioned by Blackstone on the use of star include the derivation from steoran meaning to govern, the Court evolved from meetings of the Kings Council, with its roots going back to the medieval period. Initially well regarded because of its speed and flexibility, Star Chamber was regarded as one of the most just, sir Edward Coke once described Star Chamber as The most honourable court that is in the Christian world. Both in respect of the judges in the court and its honourable proceeding, the Star Chamber was made up of Privy Counsellors, as well as common-law judges, and it supplemented the activities of the common-law and equity courts in both civil and criminal matters. In a sense, the court was a court of appeal, the court was set up to ensure the fair enforcement of laws against the English upper class, those so powerful that ordinary courts could never convict them of their crimes. This gave the Star Chamber great flexibility, as it could punish defendants for any action which the court felt should be unlawful, the cases decided in those sessions enabled both the very powerful and those without power to seek redress. Thus King Henry VII used the power of Star Chamber to break the power of the landed gentry which had such a cause of problems in the Wars of the Roses. Yet, when courts were often clogged or mismanaged, the Court of Star Chamber also became a site of remittance for the common people against the excesses of the nobility. In the reign of King Henry VIII, the court was under the leadership of Cardinal Wolsey, from this time forward, the Court of Star Chamber became a political weapon for bringing actions against opponents to the policies of King Henry VIII, his Ministers and his Parliament. Although it was initially a court of appeal, King Henry, Wolsey and Cranmer encouraged plaintiffs to bring their cases directly to the Star Chamber, the Court was used extensively to control Wales, after the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542. The Tudor-era gentry in Wales turned to the Chamber to evict Welsh landowners and protect themselves, one of the weapons of the Star Chamber was the ex officio oath where, because of their positions, individuals were forced to swear to answer truthfully all questions that might be asked. King James I and his son Charles used the court to examine cases of sedition and it came to be used to try nobles too powerful to be brought to trial in the lower court

21.
Long Parliament
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The Long Parliament was an English Parliament which lasted from 1640 until 1660. It followed the fiasco of the Short Parliament which had held for three weeks during the spring of 1640, and which in its turn had followed an 11-years parliamentary absence. In September 1640 writs were issued summoning a parliament to convene on 3 November 1640 by King Charles I, the parliament was summoned to pass financial bills, a step that was necessary as a result of the cost of the Bishops Wars. It sat from 1640 until 1648, when it was purged by the New Model Army and this cleared the way for a new Parliament to be elected, which was known as the Convention Parliament. But many of original members of Long Parliament, such as were barred from the final acts of the Long Parliament. He believed its republican principles made it a precursor to the American Revolutionary War, instead, the Parliament quickly proceeded to impeach William Laud, the Archbishop of Canterbury, of high treason, on 18 December. John Finch was impeached the following day, and he fled to the Netherlands with Charless permission on 21 December. The Parliament was initially influenced by John Pym and his supporters, Pym rose in his place and entered into a particular enumeration of the troubles of the kingdom. Early in the Long Parliaments proceedings, the house also unanimously accused the Earl of Strafford of high treason and this marked a new unanimity in Irish politics, whereby Old English, Gaelic Irish and New English settlers joined together in a legal body to present evidence against governor Strafford. However, the evidence supplied indirectly by Henry Vane the Elder through his son in relation to Straffords alleged improper use, Vane the Elder, on the Kings Privy Council, remained completely loyal to his King. These handwritten notes of the elder Vane obtained by Henry Vane the Younger were confirmed by independent testimony, Pym immediately moved a Bill of Attainder, asserting Straffords guilt and ordering that he be put to death. Charles, however, promised Strafford that he would not sign the attainder, the Lords opposed the severity of the death sentence imposed upon Strafford, but increased tensions and an attempted army coup in support of Strafford began to sway the issue. On 21 April, the Bill went virtually unopposed in the Commons, Charles, fearing for his familys safety, signed the death warrant on 10 May. Strafford was beheaded two days later, with the King having been implicated, the Long Parliament passed the Triennial Act, also known as the Dissolution Act, in May 1641, to which the Royal Assent was readily granted. In the meantime both Parliament and the King agreed to an independent investigation of royal involvement in Straffords plot. This Triennial Act required Parliament to be summoned at least once every three years, and stipulated that when the King failed to issue proper summons, the members could assemble on their own. The very doctrine of modern freedoms have, to some degree, on 3 May, Parliament issued the Protestation of 1641, attacking the wicked counsels of Charless government. Those who signed the petition undertook to defend the reformed religion, Parliament, and the kings person, honour

22.
Queen's Messenger
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The Corps of Queens Messengers are couriers employed by the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office. They hand-carry secret and important documents to British embassies and consulates around the world, many Queens Messengers are retired Army personnel. Messengers generally travel in plain clothes in business class on scheduled airlines, the bag is closed with a tamper-proof seal and has its own diplomatic passport. The first recorded Kings Messenger was John Norman, who was appointed in 1485 by King Richard III to hand-deliver secret documents for his monarch, during his exile, Charles II appointed four trusted men to convey messages to Royalist forces in England. As a sign of their authority, the King broke four silver greyhounds from a familiar to royal courtiers. A silver greyhound thus became the symbol of the Service, on formal occasions, the Queens Messengers wear this badge from a ribbon, and on less formal occasions many messengers wear ties with a discreet greyhound pattern while working. In 1995 a Parliamentary question put the then at 27. The current number of Messengers as of March 2015 is sixteen full-time, in December 2015 an article in the Daily Express suggested that the Queens Messenger service was facing the chop by cost-cutting Foreign Office mandarins who see them as a legacy of a by-gone age. The British Rail Class 67 diesel locomotive 67005 bears the name Queens Messenger, diplomatic courier BSAA Star Dust was carrying a Kings Messenger at the time of its disappearance SS Berlin was carrying a Kings Messenger at the time of its sinking Antrobus, George Pollock. Kings Messenger, 1918-1940, memoirs of a Silver greyhound, Queens Messenger Story 1952, British Pathe film,7,42 mins

23.
John Milton
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John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of flux and political upheaval. Miltons poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a passion for freedom and self-determination, Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost as a poem which. The phases of Miltons life parallel the major historical and political divisions in Stuart Britain, the Restoration of 1660 deprived Milton, now completely blind, of his public platform, but this period saw him complete most of his major works of poetry. Miltons views developed from his extensive reading, as well as travel and experience. By the time of his death in 1674, Milton was impoverished and on the margins of English intellectual life, yet famous throughout Europe, John Milton was born in Bread Street, London on 9 December 1608, the son of composer John Milton and his wife Sarah Jeffrey. The senior John Milton moved to London around 1583 after being disinherited by his devout Catholic father Richard Milton for embracing Protestantism, in London, the senior John Milton married Sarah Jeffrey and found lasting financial success as a scrivener. He lived in and worked from a house on Bread Street, the elder Milton was noted for his skill as a musical composer, and this talent left his son with a lifelong appreciation for music and friendships with musicians such as Henry Lawes. Miltons fathers prosperity provided his eldest son with a tutor, Thomas Young. Research suggests that Youngs influence served as the introduction to religious radicalism. After Youngs tutorship, Milton attended St Pauls School in London, there he began the study of Latin and Greek, and the classical languages left an imprint on his poetry in English. Miltons first datable compositions are two psalms done at age 15 at Long Bennington, one contemporary source is the Brief Lives of John Aubrey, an uneven compilation including first-hand reports. In the work, Aubrey quotes Christopher, Miltons younger brother, When he was young, he studied hard and sat up very late. In 1625, Milton began attending Christs College, Cambridge and he graduated with a B. A. in 1629, and ranked fourth of 24 honours graduates that year in the University of Cambridge. Preparing to become an Anglican priest, Milton stayed on to obtain his Master of Arts degree on 3 July 1632, Milton was probably rusticated for quarrelling in his first year with his tutor, Bishop William Chappell. He was certainly at home in the Lent Term 1626, there he wrote his Elegia Prima, a first Latin elegy, to Charles Diodati, based on remarks of John Aubrey, Chappell whipt Milton. This story is now disputed, though certainly Milton disliked Chappell, historian Christopher Hill cautiously notes that Milton was apparently rusticated, and that the differences between Chappell and Milton may have been either religious or personal. It is also possible that, like Isaac Newton four decades later, Milton was sent home because of the plague, in 1626, Miltons tutor was Nathaniel Tovey

24.
Areopagitica
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Areopagitica, A speech of Mr. Areopagitica is among historys most influential and impassioned philosophical defences of the principle of a right to freedom of speech and expression. Many of its principles have formed the basis for modern justifications. Areopagitica was published 23 November 1644 at the height of the English Civil War and it is titled after Areopagitikos, a speech written by Athenian orator Isocrates in the 5th century BC. Like Isocrates, Milton had no intention of delivering his speech orally, instead, it was distributed via pamphlet, defying the same publication censorship which he argued against. This issue was personal for Milton, as he had suffered censorship himself in his efforts to publish several tracts defending divorce, Areopagitica is full of biblical and classical references which Milton uses to strengthen his argument. This is particularly fitting because it was being addressed to the Calvinist Presbyterians who comprised Parliament at that time, before presenting his argument, Milton defends the very idea of writing a treatise such as Areopagitica. He compliments England for having overcome the tyranny of Charles I and the prelates, Milton defends this purpose, holding that to bring forth complaints before the Parliament is a matter of civil liberty and loyalty, because constructive criticism is better than false flattery. He concludes his introduction by encouraging Parliament to obey the voice of reason and to be willing to repeal any Act for the sake of truth, Milton begins with historical evidence noting that Ancient Greece and Rome did not adhere to the practice of licensing. In some cases, blasphemous or libellous writings were burnt and their authors punished, Miltons point is that, if a text is to be rejected, it should first be examined, refuted, and condemned rather than prohibited before its ideas have even been expressed. Milton points out that licensing was first instituted by the Catholics with the Inquisition and this fact appealed to Parliaments religious beliefs since it was dominated by Protestants, and there were conflicts between the Protestants and Catholics in England, see Protestant Reformation. Milton provides historical examples of the following the Inquisition, including how there were popes in Rome beginning in the 14th century who became tyrannical licensers. Milton precedes his argument by discussing the purpose of reading and he mentions that Moses, David, and Paul were all learned, which reminds his Protestant audience that being learned involves reading books of all sorts. He argues that this even the bad or heretical books, because we can learn from their wrongs. Also, the mind is not corrupted simply by encountering falsehood, Milton points out that encountering falsehood can actually lead to virtuous action, such as how St. Pauls converts had privately and voluntarily burned Ephesian books considered to be magick. The order was meant to rectify manners by preventing the spread of an infection caused by bad books, Milton also points out that Parliament will not protect the ignorant from bad books by this Order, because the books would more likely have been read by the learned anyhow. Furthermore, whatever bad ideas were written can still be taught through word of mouth or otherwise, Milton argues that licensing is a dishonour and derogation to the author, to the book, to the priviledge and dignity of Learning. This is because many authors will produce a work with genuinely good intentions only to have it censored by what amounts to a subjective. Milton also thinks that England needs to be open to truth and understanding, Faith and knowledge need exercise, but this Order will lead to conformity and laziness

25.
John Locke
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John Locke FRS was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the Father of Liberalism. Considered one of the first of the British empiricists, following the tradition of Sir Francis Bacon and his work greatly affected the development of epistemology and political philosophy. His writings influenced Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, many Scottish Enlightenment thinkers and his contributions to classical republicanism and liberal theory are reflected in the United States Declaration of Independence. Locke was the first to define the self through a continuity of consciousness and he postulated that, at birth, the mind was a blank slate or tabula rasa. This is now known as empiricism, an example of Lockes belief in Empiricism can be seen in his quote, whatever I write, as soon as I discover it not to be true, my hand shall be the forwardest to throw it into the fire. This shows the ideology of science in his observations in that something must be capable of being tested repeatedly, challenging the work of others, Locke is said to have established the method of introspection, or observing the emotions and behaviours of one’s self. Locke was born on 29 August 1632, in a thatched cottage by the church in Wrington, Somerset. He was baptised the same day, soon after Lockes birth, the family moved to the market town of Pensford, about seven miles south of Bristol, where Locke grew up in a rural Tudor house in Belluton. In 1647, Locke was sent to the prestigious Westminster School in London under the sponsorship of Alexander Popham, after completing studies there, he was admitted to Christ Church, Oxford, in the autumn of 1652 at the age of twenty. The dean of the college at the time was John Owen, although a capable student, Locke was irritated by the undergraduate curriculum of the time. He found the works of philosophers, such as René Descartes. Locke was awarded a degree in February 1656 and a masters degree in June 1658. In 1666, he met Lord Anthony Ashley Cooper, 1st Earl of Shaftesbury, Cooper was impressed with Locke and persuaded him to become part of his retinue. Locke had been looking for a career and in 1667 moved into Shaftesburys home at Exeter House in London, in London, Locke resumed his medical studies under the tutelage of Thomas Sydenham. Sydenham had an effect on Lockes natural philosophical thinking – an effect that would become evident in An Essay Concerning Human Understanding. Lockes medical knowledge was put to the test when Shaftesburys liver infection became life-threatening, Locke coordinated the advice of several physicians and was probably instrumental in persuading Shaftesbury to undergo surgery to remove the cyst. Shaftesbury survived and prospered, crediting Locke with saving his life, Shaftesbury, as a founder of the Whig movement, exerted great influence on Lockes political ideas. Locke became involved in politics when Shaftesbury became Lord Chancellor in 1672, following Shaftesburys fall from favour in 1675, Locke spent some time travelling across France as tutor and medical attendant to Caleb Banks

26.
Glorious Revolution
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The crisis facing the king came to a head in 1688, with the birth of the kings son, James Francis Edward Stuart, on 10 June. This changed the line of succession by displacing the heiress presumptive with young James Francis Edward as heir apparent. The establishment of a Roman Catholic dynasty in the kingdoms now seemed likely, stadtholder William, the de facto head of state of the Dutch United Provinces, feared a Catholic Anglo–French alliance and had already been planning a military intervention in England. After consolidating political and financial support, William crossed the North Sea and English Channel with an invasion fleet in November 1688. After only two minor clashes between the two opposing armies in England, and anti-Catholic riots in several towns, Jamess regime collapsed, however, this was followed by the protracted Williamite War in Ireland and Dundees rising in Scotland. In Englands distant American colonies, the led to the collapse of the Dominion of New England. By threatening to withdraw his troops, William in February 1689 convinced a newly chosen Convention Parliament to make him, the Revolution permanently ended any chance of Catholicism becoming re-established in England. The Revolution led to limited tolerance for Nonconformist Protestants, although it would be some time before they had political rights. Internationally, the Revolution was related to the War of the Grand Alliance on mainland Europe and it has been seen as the last successful invasion of England. It ended all attempts by England in the Anglo-Dutch Wars of the 17th century to subdue the Dutch Republic by military force, the expression Glorious Revolution was first used by John Hampden in late 1689, and is an expression that is still used by the British Parliament. The Glorious Revolution is also termed the Bloodless Revolution, albeit inaccurately. Jamess greatest political problem was his Catholicism, which left him alienated from both parties in England. The low church Whigs had failed in their attempt to pass the Exclusion Bill to exclude James from the throne between 1679 and 1681, and Jamess supporters were the high church Anglican Tories. In Scotland, his supporters in the Parliament of Scotland stepped up attempts to force the Covenanters to renounce their faith, when James inherited the English throne in 1685, he had much support in the Loyal Parliament, which was composed mostly of Tories. His Catholicism was of concern to many, but the fact that he had no son, Jamess attempt to relax the Penal Laws alienated his natural supporters, however, because the Tories viewed this as tantamount to disestablishment of the Church of England. The majority of Irish people backed James II for this reason, by allying himself with the Catholics, Dissenters, and Nonconformists, James hoped to build a coalition that would advance Catholic emancipation. In May 1686, James decided to obtain from the English courts of the law a ruling that affirmed his power to dispense with Acts of Parliament. He dismissed judges who disagreed with him on this matter as well as the Solicitor General Heneage Finch, eleven out of the twelve judges ruled in favour of dispensing power

27.
Coffeehouse
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A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment which primarily serves hot coffee, related coffee beverages, tea, and other hot beverages. Some coffeehouses also serve cold beverages such as iced coffee and iced tea, many cafés also serve some type of food, such as light snacks, muffins, or pastries. Coffeehouses range from owner-operated small businesses to multinational corporations. A coffeehouse may share some of the characteristics of a bar or restaurant. Many coffee houses in the Middle East and in West Asian immigrant districts in the Western world offer shisha, espresso bars are a type of coffeehouse that specializes in serving espresso and espresso-based drinks. Since the development of Wi-Fi, coffeehouses with this capability have also become places for patrons to access the Internet on their laptops, a coffeehouse can serve as an informal club for its regular members. As early as the 1950s Beatnik era and the 1960s folk music scene, coffeehouses have hosted singer-songwriter performances, coffeehouses in Mecca became a concern as places for political gatherings to the imams, who banned them, as well as the drink, for Muslims between 1512 and 1524. In 1530, the first coffeehouse was opened in Damascus and not long there were many coffeehouses in Cairo. About that year, a fellow called Hakam from Aleppo and a wag called Shams from Damascus came to the city, they opened a large shop in the district called Tahtakale. Various legends involving the introduction of coffee to Istanbul at a Kiva Han in the late 15th century circulate in culinary tradition, resembling checkers, hopscotch, and chess, are played. In addition, mollas, dervishes, and poets take turns telling stories in verse or in prose, the narrations by the mollas and the dervishes are moral lessons, like our sermons, but it is not considered scandalous not to pay attention to them. No one is forced to give up his game or his conversation because of it. It often happens that two or three people talk at the time, one on one side, the other on the opposite, and sometimes one will be a preacher. The most common English spelling, café, is the French, Portuguese and Spanish spelling, thus the spelling cafe has become very common in English-language usage throughout the world, especially for the less formal, i. e. greasy spoon variety. The Italian spelling, caffè, is sometimes used in English. In southern England, especially around London in the 1950s, the French pronunciation was often altered to /ˈkæf/. The English words coffee and café both descend from the Italian word for coffee, caffè—first attested as caveé in Venice in 1570— and in turn derived from the Arabic qahuwa. The Arabic term qahuwa originally referred to a type of wine but after the ban by Mohammed

28.
The London Gazette
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The London Gazette claims to be the oldest surviving English newspaper and the oldest continuously published newspaper in the UK, having been first published on 7 November 1665 as The Oxford Gazette. This claim is made by the Stamford Mercury and Berrows Worcester Journal. It does not have a large circulation, in turn, The London Gazette carries not only notices of UK-wide interest, but also those relating specifically to entities or people in England and Wales. However, certain notices that are only of specific interest to Scotland or Northern Ireland are also required to be published in The London Gazette, the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes are published by TSO on behalf of Her Majestys Stationery Office. They are subject to Crown Copyright, the London Gazette is published each weekday, except for Bank Holidays. The official Gazettes are published by The Stationery Office, the content, apart from insolvency notices, is available in a number of machine-readable formats, including XML and XML/RDFa via Atom feed. The London Gazette was first published as The Oxford Gazette on 7 November 1665. Charles II and the Royal Court had moved to Oxford to escape the Great Plague of London, the Gazette was Published by Authority by Henry Muddiman, and its first publication is noted by Samuel Pepys in his diary. The King returned to London as the plague dissipated, and the Gazette moved too, the Gazette was not a newspaper in the modern sense, it was sent by post to subscribers, not printed for sale to the general public. Her Majestys Stationery Office took over the publication of the Gazette in 1889, publication of the Gazette was transferred to the private sector, under government supervision, in the 1990s, when HMSO was sold and renamed The Stationery Office. In time of war, dispatches from the conflicts are published in The London Gazette. People referred to are said to have mentioned in dispatches. When members of the forces are promoted, and these promotions are published here. Man tally-ho, Miss piano, Wife silk and satin, Boy Greek and Latin, the phrase gazetted fortune hunter is also probably derived from this. Notices of engagement and marriage were also published in the Gazette. Gazettes, modelled on The London Gazette, were issued for most British colonial possessions

29.
The Daily Courant
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The Daily Courant, initially published on 11 March 1702, was the first British daily newspaper. It was produced by Elizabeth Mallet at her premises next to the Kings Arms tavern at Fleet Bridge in London, the newspaper consisted of a single page, with advertisements on the reverse side. Mallet advertised that she intended to only foreign news and would not add any comments of her own. Mallet soon sold The Daily Courant to Samuel Buckley, who moved it to premises in the area of Little Britain in London, Buckley later became the publisher of The Spectator. The Daily Courant lasted until 1735, when it was merged with the Daily Gazetteer

30.
Jonathan Swift
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Jonathan Swift was an Anglo-Irish satirist, essayist, political pamphleteer, poet and cleric who became Dean of St Patricks Cathedral, Dublin. Swift is remembered for such as A Tale of a Tub, An Argument Against Abolishing Christianity, Gullivers Travels. He is regarded by the Encyclopædia Britannica as the foremost prose satirist in the English language and he originally published all of his works under pseudonyms – such as Lemuel Gulliver, Isaac Bickerstaff, Drapiers Letters as MB Drapier – or anonymously. He is also known for being a master of two styles of satire, the Horatian and Juvenalian styles and his deadpan, ironic writing style, particularly in A Modest Proposal, has led to such satire being subsequently termed Swiftian. Jonathan Swift was born on 30 November 1667 in Dublin, Ireland and he was the second child and only son of Jonathan Swift and his wife Abigail Erick of Frisby on the Wreake. Swifts father died in Dublin about seven months before he was born, Swifts family had several interesting literary connections. His grandmother Elizabeth Swift was the niece of Sir Erasmus Dryden, the same grandmothers aunt Katherine Dryden was a first cousin of Elizabeth, wife of Sir Walter Raleigh. His great-great grandmother Margaret Swift was the sister of Francis Godwin and his uncle Thomas Swift married a daughter of poet and playwright Sir William Davenant, a godson of William Shakespeare. Swifts benefactor and uncle Godwin Swift took primary responsibility for the young man and he attended Dublin University in 1682, financed by Godwins son Willoughby, from which he received his B. A. in 1686 and developed his friendship with William Congreve. Temple was an English diplomat who arranged the Triple Alliance of 1668 and he had retired from public service to his country estate to tend his gardens and write his memoirs. Gaining his employers confidence, Swift was often trusted with matters of great importance, within three years of their acquaintance, Temple had introduced his secretary to William III and sent him to London to urge the King to consent to a bill for triennial Parliaments. Swift took up his residence at Moor Park where he met Esther Johnson, then eight years old, Swift was her tutor and mentor, giving her the nickname Stella, and the two maintained a close but ambiguous relationship for the rest of Esthers life. In 1690, Swift left Temple for Ireland because of his health, the illness consisted of fits of vertigo or giddiness, now known to be Ménières disease, and it continued to plague him throughout his life. During this second stay with Temple, Swift received his M. A. from Hart Hall, then he left Moor Park, apparently despairing of gaining a better position through Temples patronage, to become an ordained priest in the Established Church of Ireland. He was appointed to the prebend of Kilroot in the Diocese of Connor in 1694, with his parish located at Kilroot, Swift appears to have been miserable in his new position, being isolated in a small, remote community far from the centres of power and influence. While at Kilroot, however, he may well have become involved with Jane Waring, whom he called Varina. A letter from him survives, offering to remain if she would marry him and promising to leave and she presumably refused, because Swift left his post and returned to England and Temples service at Moor Park in 1696, and he remained there until Temples death. There he was employed in helping to prepare Temples memoirs and correspondence for publication, during this time, Swift wrote The Battle of the Books, a satire responding to critics of Temples Essay upon Ancient and Modern Learning, though Battle was not published until 1704

31.
Daniel Defoe
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Daniel Defoe, born Daniel Foe, was an English trader, writer, journalist, pamphleteer, and spy, most famous for his novel Robinson Crusoe. He was also a pioneer of economic journalism, Daniel Foe was probably born in Fore Street in the parish of St. Giles Cripplegate, London. Defoe later added the aristocratic-sounding De to his name, and on occasion claimed descent from the family of De Beau Faux and his birthdate and birthplace are uncertain, and sources offer dates from 1659–1662, with 1660 considered the most likely. His father James Foe was a tallow chandler and a member of the Worshipful Company of Butchers. In 1667, when he was probably about seven, a Dutch fleet sailed up the Medway via the River Thames and his mother Annie had died by the time he was about ten. Defoe was educated at the Rev. James Fishers boarding school in Pixham Lane in Dorking, during this period, the English government persecuted those who chose to worship outside the Church of England. Defoe entered the world of business as a merchant, dealing at different times in hosiery, general woollen goods. His ambitions were great and he was able to buy a country estate, in 1684, Defoe married Mary Tuffley, the daughter of a London merchant, receiving a dowry of £3,700 – a huge amount by the standards of the day. With his debts and political difficulties, the marriage may have been troubled, in 1685, Defoe joined the ill-fated Monmouth Rebellion but gained a pardon, by which he escaped the Bloody Assizes of Judge George Jeffreys. Queen Mary and her husband William III were jointly crowned in 1688, and Defoe became one of Williams close allies, some of the new policies led to conflict with France, thus damaging prosperous trade relationships for Defoe, who had established himself as a merchant. In 1692, Defoe was arrested for debts of £700, though his total debts may have amounted to £17,000 and his laments were loud and he always defended unfortunate debtors, but there is evidence that his financial dealings were not always honest. Following his release, he travelled in Europe and Scotland, and it may have been at this time that he traded wine to Cadiz, Porto. By 1695, he was back in England, now using the name Defoe and serving as a commissioner of the glass duty. In 1696, he ran a tile and brick factory in what is now Tilbury in Essex, Defoes first notable publication was An Essay upon Projects, a series of proposals for social and economic improvement, published in 1697. From 1697 to 1698, he defended the right of King William III to an army during disarmament. His most successful poem, The True-Born Englishman, defended the king against the perceived xenophobia of his enemies, satirising the English claim to racial purity. In 1701, Defoe presented the Legions Memorial to the Speaker of the House of Commons, later his employer Robert Harley and it demanded the release of the Kentish petitioners, who had asked Parliament to support the king in an imminent war against France. The death of William III in 1702 once again created a political upheaval, in it, he ruthlessly satirised both the High church Tories and those Dissenters who hypocritically practised so-called occasional conformity, such as his Stoke Newington neighbour Sir Thomas Abney

32.
Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington
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Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington, KG, KB, PC was a British Whig statesman who served continuously in government from 1715 until his death. He served as the Prime Minister from 1742 until his death in 1743, Compton, the third son of the 3rd Earl of Northampton, was educated at St Pauls and at Trinity College, Oxford. Thereafter he was admitted into Middle Temple and he entered the House of Commons for the first time in 1698, representing Eye in Suffolk. Although his family were High Tories, he turned to the Whigs after a quarrel with his brother, in Parliament he soon stood out as prominent amongst the Whigs and began a partnership with Robert Walpole that would last for over forty years. It is believed that the Tories retained him as they sought to maintain the support of the Compton family, in 1713 Compton re-entered Parliament for East Grinstead and when the Whigs took power in 1715 he was hopeful that he would enter a high office. Instead of the office he had hoped for, Compton became Treasurer to the Prince of Wales. He held this post from 1715 to 1727, one year after his appointment in that capacity and he maintained the role despite the split in the Whigs in 1717 in which he joined the Walpole-Townshend alliance and found himself in opposition to the government of the day. He managed to maintain his position through until 1720, when the split ended, in order to avoid this, Walpole sought to keep Compton on the margins of government, though he was appointed as Paymaster of the Forces, a very lucrative post, from 1722 until 1730. In 1725, Compton entered Walpoles government as Lord Privy Seal and was created a Knight of the Bath. In 1727, George II succeeded to the throne and sought to bring about the change in leadership he had promised, however, Compton was not perceived as a man of great ability. He was described by a contemporary as a plodding, heavy fellow, with great application, in particular he proved unable to compete with Walpoles proposals for an allowance for the King. At a meeting between the three, Compton declared he was not up to the task of government and he maintained a hatred of Walpole for the humiliation. With this passed his last serious chance of holding real control over policy and he remained on very close terms with George, but the era when Kings could personally select their own ministers in defiance of parliament, was ending. He became increasingly associated with the Patriot Whigs, those most critical of Walpole, but in Parliament generally stuck to the official line of the ministry. However, during the Excise Crisis of 1733, he failed to carry through a threat to resign, after being bought off with the promise to him a Knight of the Garter. This further weakened any following he still commanded and he served as Lord President until 1742. He was involved in the creation of the Foundling Hospital in 1739 and this charity became the capitals most fashionable way to prove ones philanthropic credentials and therefore had very notable board members, of whom Wilmington was one. In January 1742 he succeeded Walpole as First Lord of the Treasury, Wilmington was a forceful Prime Minister, and grew notorious amongst his cabinet for taking measures without reaching consensus

33.
University of Oxford
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The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university located in Oxford, England. It grew rapidly from 1167 when Henry II banned English students from attending the University of Paris, after disputes between students and Oxford townsfolk in 1209, some academics fled north-east to Cambridge where they established what became the University of Cambridge. The two ancient universities are frequently referred to as Oxbridge. The university is made up of a variety of institutions, including 38 constituent colleges, All the colleges are self-governing institutions within the university, each controlling its own membership and with its own internal structure and activities. Being a city university, it not have a main campus, instead, its buildings. Oxford is the home of the Rhodes Scholarship, one of the worlds oldest and most prestigious scholarships, the university operates the worlds oldest university museum, as well as the largest university press in the world and the largest academic library system in Britain. Oxford has educated many notable alumni, including 28 Nobel laureates,27 Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom, the University of Oxford has no known foundation date. Teaching at Oxford existed in form as early as 1096. It grew quickly in 1167 when English students returned from the University of Paris, the historian Gerald of Wales lectured to such scholars in 1188 and the first known foreign scholar, Emo of Friesland, arrived in 1190. The head of the university had the title of chancellor from at least 1201, the university was granted a royal charter in 1248 during the reign of King Henry III. After disputes between students and Oxford townsfolk in 1209, some academics fled from the violence to Cambridge, the students associated together on the basis of geographical origins, into two nations, representing the North and the South. In later centuries, geographical origins continued to many students affiliations when membership of a college or hall became customary in Oxford. At about the time, private benefactors established colleges as self-contained scholarly communities. Among the earliest such founders were William of Durham, who in 1249 endowed University College, thereafter, an increasing number of students lived in colleges rather than in halls and religious houses. In 1333–34, an attempt by some dissatisfied Oxford scholars to found a new university at Stamford, Lincolnshire was blocked by the universities of Oxford and Cambridge petitioning King Edward III. Thereafter, until the 1820s, no new universities were allowed to be founded in England, even in London, thus, Oxford and Cambridge had a duopoly, the new learning of the Renaissance greatly influenced Oxford from the late 15th century onwards. Among university scholars of the period were William Grocyn, who contributed to the revival of Greek language studies, and John Colet, the noted biblical scholar. With the English Reformation and the breaking of communion with the Roman Catholic Church, recusant scholars from Oxford fled to continental Europe, as a centre of learning and scholarship, Oxfords reputation declined in the Age of Enlightenment, enrolments fell and teaching was neglected

34.
University of Cambridge
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The University of Cambridge is a collegiate public research university in Cambridge, England, often regarded as one of the most prestigious universities in the world. Founded in 1209 and given royal status by King Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world. The university grew out of an association of scholars who left the University of Oxford after a dispute with the townspeople, the two ancient universities share many common features and are often referred to jointly as Oxbridge. Cambridge is formed from a variety of institutions which include 31 constituent colleges, Cambridge University Press, a department of the university, is the worlds oldest publishing house and the second-largest university press in the world. The university also operates eight cultural and scientific museums, including the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridges libraries hold a total of around 15 million books, eight million of which are in Cambridge University Library, a legal deposit library. In the year ended 31 July 2015, the university had an income of £1.64 billion. The central university and colleges have an endowment of around £5.89 billion. The university is linked with the development of the high-tech business cluster known as Silicon Fen. It is a member of associations and forms part of the golden triangle of leading English universities and Cambridge University Health Partners. As of 2017, Cambridge is ranked the fourth best university by three ranking tables and no other institution in the world ranks in the top 10 for as many subjects. Cambridge is consistently ranked as the top university in the United Kingdom, the university has educated many notable alumni, including eminent mathematicians, scientists, politicians, lawyers, philosophers, writers, actors, and foreign Heads of State. Ninety-five Nobel laureates, fifteen British prime ministers and ten Fields medalists have been affiliated with Cambridge as students, faculty, by the late 12th century, the Cambridge region already had a scholarly and ecclesiastical reputation, due to monks from the nearby bishopric church of Ely. The University of Oxford went into suspension in protest, and most scholars moved to such as Paris, Reading. After the University of Oxford reformed several years later, enough remained in Cambridge to form the nucleus of the new university. A bull in 1233 from Pope Gregory IX gave graduates from Cambridge the right to teach everywhere in Christendom, the colleges at the University of Cambridge were originally an incidental feature of the system. No college is as old as the university itself, the colleges were endowed fellowships of scholars. There were also institutions without endowments, called hostels, the hostels were gradually absorbed by the colleges over the centuries, but they have left some indicators of their time, such as the name of Garret Hostel Lane. Hugh Balsham, Bishop of Ely, founded Peterhouse, Cambridges first college, the most recently established college is Robinson, built in the late 1970s

Start of the parchment roll of the Reform Act 1832, with the clerk's record of the royal assent of King William IV written above the bill, reading in full Le Roy Veult soit baillé aux Seigneurs. A cette Bille avecque des amendemens les Seigneurs sont assentuz. A ces Amendemens les Communes sont assentuz.